No Trophies for Terrorists

Israel should keep cameras away from scenes of carnage

At some point Israelis are likely to start asking themselves: Why should we continue to let TV reporters and news photographers take pictures of terrorist murder scenes? Of dead and maimed Israelis, shocked bystanders, grieving families, blood in the streets?

Who gave TV cameras the right to be there in the first place? Exactly why should we allow the shoving of cameras in the faces of suffering people?

In Israel today it is intolerable times ten, because we have every reason to assume that some Palestinians do not merely watch, they gloat.

In any place at any time, it is intolerable that a hurt or grieving person should be required to run the TV-camera obstacle course for the gratification of spectacle-aficionados. In Israel today it is intolerable times ten, because we have every reason to assume that some Palestinians do not merely watch, they gloat. Surely the least any society owes to the wounded and their stricken friends and families is to shield them from cameramen catering to this bloodlust. After a terror-bombing we see the wounded rushed past on stretchers in their ripped-up clothing, covered in blood and dazed with pain -- but with dignity intact, and so they do their best to shield their faces from the leering lenses. The intrepid cameramen must be proud.

Israel (in any case) is at war, and what could justify the bizarre practice of showing the enemy exactly what his latest attack has accomplished? In April 1941, the British government discontinued its weekly announcements of shipping lost to the Nazis. Thereafter announcements were made monthly. It seemed unnecessary to keep the Nazis absolutely up-to-date on their progress in strangling Britain. Churchill wrote to his Minister for Information: "When the comment is made that we are afraid to publish weekly because, as you say, 'we desire to cover up,'… the answer should be, 'Well, that is what we are going to do anyway.' Friends and enemies will no doubt put on their own interpretations."

More is at stake, though, than honor and dignity and wartime prudence. There is reason to believe that proto-terrorists aren't merely thrilled when they see Jews murdered and other Jews undone by grief; they are inspired. Such video sequences are the trophies of the TV age. The world's philosophers have fooled around with TV but haven't put into simple words TV's fundamental role nowadays in ratifying reality. If you haven't seen it on TV, it hasn't quite happened.

We know how important videotapes and TV have become in various parts of Arab society. We have heard about Al Jazeera. We know about videotaped messages from master terrorists, and videotaped murders. We can remember a generation back to the audio cassettes recorded in Paris that helped sweep Khomeini to power in Iran.

Words are powerful, but the modern terrorist wants video.

Suppose there were no more photos or videos of terrorist crime scenes; suppose they were banned under Israeli law. Suppose relatives and responsible authorities were notified immediately, and everyone else had to guess. Israel is a small, talkative country, and word would get out right away. Proto-terrorists would hear all about the latest attack -- but their cherished trophies would be missing. No videotaped misery to celebrate. Mere word of mouth, which is pale by comparison. Words are powerful (or used to be), but the modern terrorist wants video.

Of course Israel is a democracy, where the government must report and be held accountable. But it could report in words instead of pictures. It could report weeks after the fact. All rational people accept limitations on their right to know in time of war.

Terror groups would no doubt respond at first by boasting about ever-increasing death tolls. But without pictures, the actual crimes would gradually dematerialize in proto-terrorist minds. Perhaps they'd be gassed up into great, zeppelin-sized myths -- but myths are less inspiring now that they must compete with TV footage. Of course, suicide murderers have a reason to kill that is unrelated to TV coverage. But prospective murderers do want to be famous, like everybody else; we have seen their suicide notes, videotaped for worldwide distribution. If the great deed itself is not going to be on TV after all, if your posthumous career as a TV personality is going to be cruelly curtailed--does it still pay to kill and die? Not all potential murderers are the same. But if even one decided that, on second thought . . .

"Cycle of violence" is a phony phrase, suggesting that Israelis and Palestinians kill each other as part of some sort of tiresome Punch and Judy show. There is no "cycle of violence" in the Middle East; there are Jews being murdered, and there are consequences when they are murdered. (When anyone is murdered there are consequences--the "cycle of violence" is called "justice," except where Israelis are involved.) But it is possible that by allowing terrorist murders to de-materialize in the Palestinian mind (they will remain all too real to Israelis), Israeli governments could buy themselves some time and flexibility in planning their military responses. There might be many advantages to the only decent course.

Some people claim that, in an age of terrorist murder, Israel needs those TV pictures so that the world will understand her. But surely those who do not by now understand never will; and those who do understand will go on understanding without the gruesome pictures.

Visitor Comments: 7

(7)
Ellen Shepard,
February 10, 2003 12:00 AM

Hooray for Gelernter

Gelernter's suggestion goes well beyond the usual pointless hand-wringing. Tied to history and based in uncommon good sense, David Gelernter has managed to offer a valuable suggestion, that I, for one, would like to see the Israeli government implement with all deliberate speed.

(6)
judith,
October 21, 2002 12:00 AM

This would give terrorists a media victory

As someone active in media response in Australia, I have to alert you to the fact that this would be a great propaganda advantage for the Palestinians. They always play up their own deaths, which therefore receive much coverage and paint a picture in the mind of the uninformed reader of Israeli bloodthirstiness. Remember that what can't be shown on TV effectively does not exist: it will not be reported at all. That means the immediate effect of such a media ban would be that Palestinians would seem to be the innocent victims of unrelenting Israeli violence for no reason.
This is already the case to some extent because of Israeli reluctance to screen the gorier details of terror attacks, but it would be greatly exacerbated and we media response people would have no ammunition to fight with.
Media response is very important (b'derech hateva). By affecting public opinion we affect government policy, and this can be the difference between letting the IDF stay in the territories long enough to clear out terrorist nests and forcing them out too soon.
The primary consideration should be saving lives. I think this can only be answered by a gadol hador.

(5)
lINDA GREFE,
August 28, 2002 12:00 AM

I could not express it better!

For a very long time I believe it has been common knowlege that anyone who commits a crime is looking for that five minutes of fame, the five minutes that T.V. gives you. This can be magnified many times over when speaking about terrorists..who get such complete joy at just the sight of the total destruction of lives andmoral of the innocent people whose lives they destroy. This is not even how the video can be retaped and manipulated to feed the appetite that is lookng for this evil adrenalin rush. There are plenty of very twisted minds out there, we do not have to cater to them!!

(4)
Sarah Alexis,
August 19, 2002 12:00 AM

I must disagree

David Gelernter is right as far as the victims are concerned; however, world sympathy is a very fickle thing. It is definitely aroused by the horrible post-bombing scenes and tends to swing in the other direction when scenes of destruction in Gaza are shown. If anything, more scenes of grief should be shown to the world so that people can understand what the people of Israel are going through now.

(3)
Anonymous,
August 19, 2002 12:00 AM

Agreed, but let's extend this idea to....

I agree fully with the author. How do we gain by seeing the tragedy so close? Doesn't the carnage from one suicide murder look just like any other?

I have wondered for years why the media get so "in-your-face" with any tragedy. Obviously, when the kidnapped child's body is found, the family will be devastated. Why put them through the agony of having to talk to the cameras while they are in the first throes of grief? Likewise, victims of other tragedies, like fires ruining their homes, floods destroying their belongings, etc... it is obvious that they will be distraught. Why show it?

Once, a few years ago, ABC tried to show a program with good news. They asked people to help them do some mundane task in public, and if the people did help, later they were given a large sum of money. It was so inspiring to see this! Yet the show was cancelled immediately. Pity. If good news were broadcast more often, maybe only for a short segment of the 30 minute news shows, rather than a constant diet of death, murder, dismemberment, etc., it could help to re-establish some ethical and moral values, ones that seem to be lost these days.

May HaShem smile upon us, stop the violence, and bring Mashiach speedily and in our days!

(2)
eileen,
August 19, 2002 12:00 AM

I can see a reason for showing this bloodshed

I must say that I found this article interesting. I have been telling my friends and family(I am a Jew) that here in America the front pages of the newspapers are covered with greeving and bleeding Palestinians. Yes, Jews are shown on stretchers,but I think that sadly the effect is that non-Jews, and some Jews, feel more for the Palestinians because of the information shown. You see, the Jewish community is well aware of the effect of these suicide bombings. But here in America, where unfortunately there still remains anti-sematism and naivity, the pictures of these two groups as portrayed in our newspapers look one sided. I know it would seem horrific, but when the suicide bomber strikes, I believe that just for once, the gorry, horrific pictures should be shown, i.e.: more than just the wounded on stretchers. The media here in the US is biased toward the Palastinians. I am sorry if this sounds like a cold response to this article. I live in a mixed religious community and am always amazed at how much more sympathy I here given to the Palastinians. I cry each time I hear a report of a suicide bombing. Being a Jew it is as if someone is stabbing my heart too. I hope this all makes sense. I would like to see the main stream newspapers and TV news show, in detail, just how much the Jewish people suffer. Just once. That is all. Not to give our enemies reason to cheer. They will do that anyway. I do agree that the TV camera's
don't belong in the injured faces or the faces of their loved ones. That is just sensationalism. Thank You. Eileen

(1)
ed gelerinter,
August 18, 2002 12:00 AM

David Gelernter hit the mail right on the head with these comments. Why give the animals reason to dance around at the loss of limb and life? Israel is an open society but it must protect its citizens for people that are only interested in selling newspapers of tv advertising.

I'm told that it's a mitzvah to become intoxicated on Purim. This puzzles me, because to my understanding, it is not considered a good thing to become intoxicated, period.

One of the characteristics of the at-risk youth is their use of drugs, including alcohol. In my experience, getting drunk doesn't reveal secrets. It makes people act stupid and irresponsible, doing things they would never do if they were sober. Also, I know a lot about the horrible health effects of abusing alcohol, because I work at a research center that focuses on addiction and substance abuse.

Also, I am an alcoholic, which means that if I drink, very bad things happen. I have not had a drink in 22 years, and I have no intention of starting now. Surely there must be instances where a person is excused from the obligation to drink. I don't see how Judaism could ever promote the idea of getting drunk. It just doesn't seem right.

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Putting aside for a moment all the spiritual and philosophical reasons for getting drunk on Purim, this remains an issue of common sense. Of course, teenagers should be warned of the dangers of acute alcohol ingestion. Of course, nobody should drink and drive. Of course, nobody should become so drunk to the point of negligence in performing mitzvot. And of course, a recovering alcoholic should not partake of alcohol on Purim.

Indeed, the Code of Jewish Law explicitly says that if one suspects the drinking may affect him negatively, then he should NOT drink.

Getting drunk on Purim is actually one of the most difficult mitzvot to do correctly. A person should only drink if it will lead to positive spiritual results - e.g. under the loosening affect of the alcohol, greater awareness will surface of the love for God and Torah found deep in the heart. (Perhaps if we were on a higher spiritual level, we wouldn't need to get drunk!)

Yet the Talmud still speaks of an obligation on Purim of "not knowing the difference between Blessed is Mordechai and Cursed is Haman." How then should a person who doesn't drink get the point of “not knowing”? Simple - just go to sleep! (Rama - OC 695:2)

All this applies to individuals. But the question remains - does drinking on Purim adversely affect the collective social health of the Jewish community?

The aversion to alcoholism is engrained into Jewish consciousness from a number of Biblical and Talmudic sources. There are the rebuking words of prophets - Isaiah 28:1, Hosea 3:1 with Rashi, and Amos 6:6, and the Zohar says that "The wicked stray after wine" (Midrash Ne'alam Parshat Vayera).

It is well known that the rate of alcoholism among Jews has historically been very low. Numerous medical, psychological and sociological studies have confirmed this. The connection between Judaism and sobriety is so evident, that the following conversation is reported by Lawrence Kelemen in "Permission to Receive":

When Dr. Mark Keller, editor of the Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol, commented that "practically all Jews do drink, and yet all the world knows that Jews hardly ever become alcoholics," his colleague, Dr. Howard Haggard, director of Yale's Laboratory of Applied Physiology, jokingly proposed converting alcoholics to the Jewish religion in order to immerse them in a culture with healthy attitudes toward drinking!

Perhaps we could suggest that it is precisely because of the use of alcohol in traditional ceremonies (Kiddush, Bris, Purim, etc.), that Jews experience such low rates of alcoholism. This ceremonial usage may actually act like an inoculation - i.e. injecting a safe amount that keeps the disease away.

Of course, as we said earlier, all this needs to be monitored with good common sense. Yet in my personal experience - having been in the company of Torah scholars who were totally drunk on Purim - they acted with extreme gentleness and joy. Amid the Jewish songs and beautiful words of Torah, every year the event is, for me, very special.

Adar 12 marks the dedication of Herod's renovations on the second Holy Temple in Jerusalem in 11 BCE. Herod was king of Judea in the first century BCE who constructed grand projects like the fortresses at Masada and Herodium, the city of Caesarea, and fortifications around the old city of Jerusalem. The most ambitious of Herod's projects was the re-building of the Temple, which was in disrepair after standing over 300 years. Herod's renovations included a huge man-made platform that remains today the largest man-made platform in the world. It took 10,000 men 10 years just to build the retaining walls around the Temple Mount; the Western Wall that we know today is part of that retaining wall. The Temple itself was a phenomenal site, covered in gold and marble. As the Talmud says, "He who has not seen Herod's building, has never in his life seen a truly grand building."

Some people gauge the value of themselves by what they own. But in reality, the entire concept of ownership of possessions is based on an illusion. When you obtain a material object, it does not become part of you. Ownership is merely your right to use specific objects whenever you wish.

How unfortunate is the person who has an ambition to cleave to something impossible to cleave to! Such a person will not obtain what he desires and will experience suffering.

Fortunate is the person whose ambition it is to acquire personal growth that is independent of external factors. Such a person will lead a happy and rewarding life.

With exercising patience you could have saved yourself 400 zuzim (Berachos 20a).

This Talmudic proverb arose from a case where someone was fined 400 zuzim because he acted in undue haste and insulted some one.

I was once pulling into a parking lot. Since I was a bit late for an important appointment, I was terribly annoyed that the lead car in the procession was creeping at a snail's pace. The driver immediately in front of me was showing his impatience by sounding his horn. In my aggravation, I wanted to join him, but I saw no real purpose in adding to the cacophony.

When the lead driver finally pulled into a parking space, I saw a wheelchair symbol on his rear license plate. He was handicapped and was obviously in need of the nearest parking space. I felt bad that I had harbored such hostile feelings about him, but was gratified that I had not sounded my horn, because then I would really have felt guilty for my lack of consideration.

This incident has helped me to delay my reactions to other frustrating situations until I have more time to evaluate all the circumstances. My motives do not stem from lofty principles, but from my desire to avoid having to feel guilt and remorse for having been foolish or inconsiderate.

Today I shall...

try to withhold impulsive reaction, bearing in mind that a hasty act performed without full knowledge of all the circumstances may cause me much distress.

With stories and insights,
Rabbi Twerski's new book Twerski on Machzor makes Rosh Hashanah prayers more meaningful. Click here to order...